Rear Admiral Evelyn J. Fields (ret.)

Rear Admiral Evelyn Fields’ name has come up many times when researching Black women in Marine Science. I don’t immediately think of military officers also being scientists, but many of them are, if not directly, then in support positions that make the work possible. Mapping the sea floor, as Field did, is most often done on ships through Hydrographic surveys – bouncing signals from the ship down to the bottom of the ocean over and over again to “see” the ground under the water. Once all that data is collected, people are needed to collate and sift through the information to translate the numbers into lines on maps. While much of that work is sorted by computers these days, people continue to be a part of the process, and as a Cartographer and then an Officer and Commander, Fields was part of gathering that data.

Born in Norfolk, Virginia, in 1949, Fields is the oldest of five children. They were raised by their mother, a Teacher, and father, a civilian employee of the Norfolk, VA Naval Shipyard. She and her siblings all graduated from college. Her brothers all went into the Army and are also retired, while her sister attended divinity school and became a teacher.

Fields showed an early aptitude for Math and while in the Girl Scouts she discovered Maps. From there she got a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics from Norfolk State University, a Historically Black University in Norfolk, VA. And in 1972 she took a job as a cartographer with NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration* [*NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (of the United States) is directly involved in learning about, planning for, and managing all things weather, ocean and coast related for the United States and, incoordination with other nations, cares for the general well being of our Climate and all its parts. Originally founded in In 1807 as the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, the organization evolved over the years, adding branches, changing names until becoming NOAA in 1970. Their mission is [t]o understand and predict changes in climate, weather, ocean, and coasts,
to share that knowledge and information with others, and to conserve and manage
coastal and marine ecosystems and resources, just as they were expanding their charting program and incorporate computers into their work. A year later NOAA began recruiting women into their Commissioned Officer Corps. Looking for her next challenge, Fields applied and in 1973 became the first African American woman to join the NOAA Corps.

Throughout her career, Fields participated in hydrographic survey operations, fisheries investigations and oceanographic research. She served as the operations officer of the NOAA Ships Mt. Mitchell and Peirce, and as executive officer on Rainier. Through these postings she was able to work in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, and Alaskan waters. In 1989, Fields was given command of NOAAS McArthur, making her the first female commander of a federal ship.

During her years of service, Fields helped direct “the development of roster and vector charts, doubling of chart production, reduction of chart update production time from 47 to just four weeks … and increase in data acquisition capabilities on board NOAA hydrogrpahic survey ships.” – U.S. Commerce Secretary William M. Daley.

In 1999 she became the first woman and first African American to lead the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, and be promoted to Rear Admiral.

RADM Fields retired in 2002 and is, I hope, living the next phase of the private, fulfilling life, she created for herself.

Links

Video: Evelyn Fields: A trailblazer

Article: Rear Adm. Evelyn Fields: Breaking Ground (Again), starting at page 4.